Cincinnati—Alston Park, an affordable multifamily development in Cincinnati, has received the Ohio Conference of Community Development President’s Award for Innovative Practices. The annual award recognizes projects that “meet significant needs with immediate and sustainable impact in the community, and can be replicated elsewhere with similar success,” according to the organization.

The Alston Park renovation replaced 65 abandoned and deteriorating units with 39 green apartment units for lower-income families. The formerly blighted site now features outdoor recreation space, a tot lot and landscaped surroundings. The developer is the Woda Group, ranked as the fourth largest affordable housing developer in the country by Affordable Housing Finance.

The property, which is Cincinnati’s Avondale neighborhood, has also received LEED Gold certification. Sol design + consulting provided energy efficiency consultation and green building certification services for the project.

Among other sustainable features, Alston Park includes low flow plumbing fixtures, high efficiency lighting, zero VOC paint and Green Label Plus carpet. The landscaping sports drought-tolerant plantings, and the redevelopment process used recycled drywall, the reclamation of existing major building systems and components, and some 67 percent of construction waste was diverted from landfills

Separately, the Woda Group recently won a 2015 Governor’s Award for Historic Preservation from the State of Michigan for the rehabilitation of Lloyd’s Department Store in Menominee, Mich. Hooker DeJong Architects & Engineers and the City of Menominee shared the honor with Woda.